A crowd listens to speakers at a reparations rally outside of City Hall in San Francisco, on March 14, 2023. California plans to spend up to $12 million on reparations legislation under a budget signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, marking …SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California plans to spend up to $12 million on reparations legislation under a budget signed by Democratic Gov.
No state has gotten further along in its consideration of reparations proposals for Black residents than California, but some have made significant strides. Illinois and New York passed laws in recent years to study reparations proposals for African Americans. Florida passed a law in the 1990s creating a college scholarship fund for descendants of Black residents who were killed in a 1923 massacre initiated by a white mob.
Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire, a Democrat, said at an event Monday that “the $12 billion is not nearly enough” but that lawmakers worked closely to secure the money during a tough budget year.